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David O. Russell Honored By, Raises Money for, School for Kids With Special Needs

UPDATED: The "Silver Linings Playbook" director, who was joined by "Parenthood" showrunner Jason Katims at the event, talked about how he plans to keep fighting to raise awareness of mental-health issues.

Writer-director David O. Russell and Parenthood showrunner Jason Katims stepped out from behind the camera on Wednesday night to help raise money for a private boarding school for kids with special needs.

Russell and Katims participated in a New York City fundraiser for Connecticut's Glenholme School, which works with children with various mental health issues and honored Russell for his work to raise awareness about those conditions.

In addition to making last year's Oscar-winning Silver Linings Playbook, Russell has long been involved with the school, helping to raise funds and make sure the kids get the resources they need, even enlisting the help of celebrities including Jim Carrey, Mark Wahlberg, Jessica Biel, Tracy Morgan, Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper.

The school gave him the first Excelsior Award, which they plan to give out for years to come, for helping generate attention and awareness of mental health issues through the platform given to him by Silver Linings.

The inscription on the award reads, "For Mr. David O. Russell who uses his gifts both on and off screen to help those without a voice, lifting us all ever upward."

Russell kept his remarks at the Bryant Park Grill event brief, praising the school and those affiliated with it. "Our family always felt like outliers trying to find a way to belong. When you come to Glenholme you belong. … You can cry on each other's shoulders and tell each other not to give up."

"I could say so many things, but I don't want to say so many things," he added. "I want to just speak with my actions and say thank you all. I've got a lot of love for everyone in this room."

Even though it's been almost a year since Silver Linings was released, it's still resonating with people, Russell said.

"In the last year it seems like everything's come out of the shadows. What was a very private thing suddenly is in the open and discussed. People come up to me in the supermarket and tell me what a difference the film makes and about things that are happening in their homes," Russell told The Hollywood Reporter.

Russell's still fighting for mental health issues, explaining that he's working with legislators to try to get mental health parity, and he said he'll try to get the cast of his upcoming American Hustle to help with the cause the way other stars have.

Later that night, he helped raise money for Glenholme's scholarship fund by auctioning off two male and female roles (for a total of $60,000) in one of his upcoming movies. (He wouldn't reveal which one, but he has several projects in the works.)

Russell has auctioned off roles for many of his previous films, noting that many people in attendance had parts in Silver Linings and American Hustle.

In fact, the crowd even got a glimpse of American Hustle when Russell had one of the school's board members, who has a part in the movie, deliver his speech from the film.

Actress Natalie Dormer, who's starring in The Counselor and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay with frequent Russell collaborator Jennifer Lawrence, helped with the auction.

Katims, who spoke at the beginning of the event, has raised awareness of Asperger's through Max Braverman, one of the characters on Parenthood, who has the condition.

"I've seen just anecdotally lots of examples of it being really meaningful to people to have a character on TV," Katims explained. "Sometimes it's just something that they can refer to to explain what they're going through."

Later he noted that people have been able to say, "You know Max on Parenthood? My son is a little like that."

He also talked about how the school, which he recently became involved with, has helped his family.

"In the past eight months, the Glenholme School has, simply put, been a life-changing experience for … our family," he said. "Our only regret is that we didn't find Glenholme sooner."

Katims said he couldn't think of a better excuse to fly across the country and urged people to give generously.